They emerged from the toilets to find that the younger children from Years Three and Four were already in the corridor.
‘You said the bell hadn’t gone,’ said Rikki. ‘What’s with all the riff-raff?’
‘They let the younger children out two minutes early. Just to avoid a big rush.’
‘I knew that. Wow.’
‘Hi, Richard!’ said a little girl.
‘Hi, Maisie.’
‘Little kids,’ said Rikki. ‘Don’t you hate them?’
‘No, I don’t.’
‘Hey, Richard!’ said a boy, running past.
‘They’re all looking at us,’ said Rikki. ‘With their sneaky-freaky eyes.’
The children were making their way towards the playground, passing Rikki on both sides. Many of them looked up, fascinated. Many of them smiled and waved, because they knew Richard from his bus-supervision duties.
‘They’re thinking how weird you look,’ said Rikki. ‘Stop staring at us!’
‘Just smile,’ said Richard. ‘They’re bound to look. Hi, Mitch!’
‘Hi, Richard – you OK?’
‘Hi, Shoko! – be nice, Rikki. Relax.’
‘You think they’re looking at me? I think they’re looking at that mummy’s-boy haircut of yours. What’s wrong with that one? – now, look at that! – he is sinister.’
‘That’s Salome’s brother. Hi, Rolo!’
‘Salome. Sure . . .’
Richard smiled. ‘He’s a nice boy. We help him.’
‘Hey!’ shouted Rikki. ‘What’s with the cap?’
‘Leave it,’ hissed Richard. ‘You know Rolo! He’s really friendly.’
‘Oi!’ shouted Rikki, more loudly. ‘What are you looking at, pixie-boy? What’s the issue?’
‘Pardon?’ said Rolo quietly. He had reached the door, but he turned and gazed with solemn eyes, surprised by Rikki’s aggression. The child was small for his age, and he stood still, with one hand on the door handle. Other children pushed past, and scattered in the playground.
‘You look lost,’ said Rikki. ‘You handicapped?’
‘It’s playtime,’ said Rolo. ‘I’m going out to play – hi, Richard.’
‘Good to see you, Rolo,’ said Richard. ‘You OK?’
‘I’m OK. I can’t remember the name of your . . . I can’t remember your name.’
‘My name’s Rikki. What’s yours?’
‘Richard just told you. Rolo. My sister’s in your class.’
‘What’s with the hat, Rolo? You a goblin?’
‘Rikki . . .’
‘Shut up,’ hissed Rikki. He turned back to the child, who stood blinking and puzzled. ‘Nobody else is wearing a hat, Rolo – I’m just curious. You look like a gnome.’
‘I get ear-ache,’ said Rolo. ‘I get this real pain in my ears.’
‘You get finger-ache too?’ Rikki had noticed that the boy was wearing gloves. Again, he was the only one. A crowd was now building up around the doors, listening to the conversation.
‘Yeah,’ said Rolo. ‘It’s a pain, but I have to keep warm. No cap, no play. No gloves – no play.’
‘Why?’
‘I don’t know. I have to keep warm.’
‘You a retard, Rolo?’
‘Rikki!’ said Richard. ‘You better shut up, now. I’m warning you.’
‘Retard?’ said Rolo. ‘I’m not a retard. I get cold easy – that doesn’t mean anything. How’d you like it if I called you a retard?’
‘But I’m not a retard, so it wouldn’t bother me. How old are you anyway, cap-head?’
‘Seven. And I’m not a cap-head.’
Rikki smiled. ‘Bet you don’t make eight,’ he said. ‘I remember you now, and I think you’re dying.’
Those listening gasped, and the bell rang loudly above their heads.
Richard got Rikki away to their classroom, where they picked up their snack, and soon they were with Eric, Mark, Jeff and others, setting up for football. Five minutes later – just as the game had got going – Richard saw Rolo’s sister, Salome, heading straight towards him. She was a powerful girl, and though Richard thought of her as a friend, she was not looking friendly.
He decided to move.
‘What are we doing?’ said Rikki.
‘I think we’d better get inside,’ said Richard.
‘Why?’
‘You know why.’
Richard trotted behind the old drama studio, and in through the nearest door. Ignoring Rikki’s protests, he made for the library. It was pointless hiding from Salome, but if he could get somewhere close to a teacher, there might be a peaceful outcome.
Unfortunately, there were no teachers in sight.
He moved on, towards the cafeteria, where there was normally someone on duty. There were just a handful of juniors eating their snacks. Salome had come the other way, and emerged in front of him, cutting off the exit.
‘Richard,’ she said. ‘Can I see you a moment?’
A small group had followed her. Jeff, Mark and Eric were all there, as were two of Salome’s best friends – two girls called Lydia and Carla. Between them stood Rolo. Including the snack-eaters, it was quite an audience.
‘Hi, Salome,’ said Richard.
She looked furious, and Richard felt a curious lightness. It was that feeling of knowing exactly what was coming, and not being able to do anything about it. Salome was not just powerful, she was tough. She was well known for her fearsome temper, and she jumped to conclusions fast. Richard could not remember a time when he’d seen her this angry, though – and certainly not with him. She was so furious that her nostrils were twitching. Her brother, Rolo, had been pushed forward and was next to her. Her arm was round his shoulders, pulling him close.
‘That’s the one,’ said Rolo. ‘I didn’t say nothing.’
‘What did you call my brother?’ said Salome quietly. She was looking directly at Rikki.
‘I don’t remember.’
‘You call him “retard”?’
‘No.’
‘Yes he did. He called me “cap-head” too. Said I was going to die.’
‘Salome,’ said Jeff. ‘It’s his first day.’
‘Stay out of it.’ She looked back at Rikki. ‘How long have you been at this school, that you think you can insult people?’
‘He didn’t mean anything,’ said Richard. ‘He’s not used to things yet.’
Salome put a finger close to Richard’s nose. ‘You stay out of it too. This is between me and him.’ Her voice was trembling. ‘What do they call you? Rikki? This is your first day, isn’t it? Like Jeff said.’
‘Yes, this is my first day – I think you probably know that, being as you haven’t seen me around before.’
‘You call my brother a retard on your first day? You think that’s wise?’
‘He gave me a mouthful. He called me a two-headed freak.’
‘That’s a lie,’ said Rolo.
‘Your brother’s out of control,’ said Rikki. ‘He spat at me, too.’
‘Look, I honestly think there was a misunderstanding,’ said Richard. ‘We like Rolo – everyone knows that.’
‘Yeah,’ said Rikki. ‘I don’t know what we’re doing here arguing about a kid. I think we’ve got better things to do.’
‘My brother gets sick, all right?’ said Salome. She was taking shallow breaths. ‘He’s got a condition where he picks up germs and bugs really easily, so one of the ways we deal with that is to make him dress up warm.’
‘I’m on medicine too,’ said Rolo.
‘It’s a pain for all of us, but we have to do it. He got really sick last year, so now he has a rule: “No cap, no play.” You understand that now?’
Rikki nodded. ‘It seems very clear.’
‘Good.’
There was a silence.
‘I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt,’ said Salome at last. ‘It’s your first day, like you said. So I’m going to assume you were just mucking about and didn’t remember stuff. But I tell you now, you ever say anything like that to my brother again – you ever mention dying – I’ll hurt you bad. I’ll put you back in the hospital you just came out of.’
Rikki smiled brightly. ‘OK. I get it.’
‘You’ve got it?’
‘For sure.’
‘Fine.’
Salome allowed herself to be turned round by one of her friends. She had her back to Richard and Rikki, and the confrontation might have ended there had Rikki not said what he said.
He spoke loudly. ‘So just to be clear . . . Let me check this: I’m not allowed to call your half-dead brother a retard, even though he’s clearly ready for the graveyard, chasing a box and a headstone, on his way to Jesus?’
Salome simply turned again and punched Rikki with all her might, full in the face.
She hit him so hard that he was knocked flat to the floor. Richard lay on his back, wide awake, gazing at the ceiling. Rikki was out like a light.
He was lifted up, blood pouring from his nose. Teachers arrived. The headmaster was called, and Dr Warren was beside him in a moment. Within thirty minutes, Richard and Rikki were back in an ambulance.
They did not go to the hospital this time, however: the ambulance was private. It sped out of town, and zoomed off to the motorway. Two hours later it was spinning down a leafy lane, then pausing before electronic gates. The gates eased open and a team of orderlies was there to receive them. ‘The Rechner Institute’, said a plate on the wall. ‘Neurological Research and Observation Centre’. Another sign said, ‘Strictly Private – Authorized Personnel Only’, and cameras gazed down from every angle.
Richard and Rikki were loaded onto a trolley and wheeled inside. Dr Warren moved briskly beside them.